First Impressions: Windows Mobile 6

I’ve had the pleasure of testing out a beta version of Windows Mobile 6 for a few weeks and I couldn’t be happier with it. We’ll have a full review coming soon, but since the embargo was just lifted I figured I’d give you some quick highlights of what’s found in the new OS as well as some of my first impressions of the operating system itself.

As I mentioned above, Microsoft lifted the embargo and is expected to officially unveil the next version of its Windows Mobile OS on Monday, February 12. Previously code-named Crossbow, Windows Mobile 6 sports many improvements and enhancements over the previous version. In general, the new OS features improved usability, faster performance, and tighter integration with Microsoft’s Office suite.

MS also changed the names of the device-types. For example, the Smartphone is now “Standard,” the Pocket PC is now “Classic,” and the Phone Edition is now “Professional.” I know a lot of professionals who use Smartphones, so I don’t know that I agree with the new names; this doesn’t change the functionality, though, so I’m not really too concerned.

Here are some highlights:HTML-formatted e-mails from POP, IMAP, and Exchange Server 2007Full integration with Windows Live (Search, Mail, Space, Messenger), including a Windows Mobile-based clientAutomatic synchronization of Outlook calendars and contacts through Exchange Server due to the inclusion of Direct Push on all Windows Mobile 6 devicesNew Microsoft Office Mobile, which allows users to view and even edit documents on the device while retaining formatting, including tables and images30% improvement in speed for Internet Explorer MobileFaster and easier set up of the deviceEasy syncing of pictures, music, etc., from Windows Vista-powered PCs to the deviceEnhanced Calendar functionality, including “Calendar ribbon,” which gives users a more understandable at a glance view, and the ability to see who is attending a meeting and even forward or reply to a meeting from the device itselfAdditional Call History and Contacts integration allows you to instantly see the contact’s information when dialing and get to the information you need quickerImproved security, including remote management and wiping of a device and protected/encrypted contentI have a huge list of all of the tweaks that have been done to the operating system, but I’ll save that for next week. Also, if you’re wondering, you can expect Windows Mobile 6 devices in the marketplace worldwide by the second quarter of 2007.

ImpressionsI’ve been playing with a beta for quite some time now and have to say that, as an everyday user of Windows Mobile, Number 6 is a much needed upgrade. In addition to the highlights above, there are a number of other enhancements that have been made that allow your productivity to soar!

Screen you see when you turn the device on

New homescreen

For example, I sync my device with an Exchange Server hosted at 4smartphone.net, and I am now completely addicted to push e-mail on the Windows Mobile device–not to mention that HTML-based e-mail is a welcome addition to the platform. Having been a BlackBerry user for years I got addicted to push e-mail, and this latest version of Windows Mobile finally lets me leave the BlackBerry behind.

HTML-formatted e-mail

The Calendar ribbon

Okay, enough about that. Here are some more shots of the new programs on the device, with some quick impressions:

Office Mobile

You can see that there are now Mobile versions of Excel, Word, and PowerPoint. They all perform as you’d expect, if not better. Without any conversion I was able to open up a PowerPoint presentation, Word doc, and an Excel sheet, navigate around, and even make changes to the files. They’re perfect for proofing and even editing, and they don’t lose any of the formatting.

I didn’t shoot any of the Office applications in action but we’ll have those for you in the coming days.

UPDATED: Here they are!

An e-mail ready to launch all of the Office attachments–nice!

Internet Explorer Mobile

The homepage now contains a search box and quick drop-down boxes for Favorites and History. While that’s nice, what’s really great is the speed improvement. I used to go back and forth between Opera and IE because I found IE slow the majority of time. I now use IE Mobile without thinking twice, which says a lot for the improvements. It also supports the latest Mobile AJAX standards, so get ready for some great Mobile-based apps from Microsoft.

Tasks

Gone is the rudimentary task viewer. You now have the ability to add and edit your tasks, including adding categories, start date, end date, due date, occurrences, and pretty much anything you can do from the PC-based Outlook.

Speak Your Mind

theartofennui

I love this operating system. It’s such an improvement over WM5, though i have noticed that they haven’t fixed the scheduling because the UI and general operation (especially on smartphones) is subpar. A good resource to run some WM6 made progams is wm6 software.net.

jsnmaloney

Hello there theartofennui, I thank you for the website mentioned in your article, i have never really experienced WM5 as this is my first PDA and in turn my first OS on it, so therefore i dont really know the difference between the two, What are the differences?

cheaboi

the differences are very cosmetic, in terms of performance and features it's mostly a few tweaks and the incorporation of the live software. i don't necesarilly recommened switching to wm6 if you have wm5, as the move isn't that big. wm7 will be much better. if you're looking for some good software for your device, i would check out windows mobile software, they have a good selection of software that will work on both WM5 and WM6 and they willl support WM7 when it comes out aswell.